CDOT officials: North Interstate 25 will be totally transformed by 2022

Johnny Olson, left, and Nathan Corbin, right, share a laugh while giving a tour of the north Interstate 25 Express Lanes project on Friday at Kendall Parkway and Interstate 25. Olson is the regional director for Colorado Department of Transportation, and Corbin is the acting project director for the North I-25 Express Lanes project, on behalf of Kraemer North America.

Meet the project team

Colorado Department of Transportation officials will host an open house on Wednesday to educate drivers about the impacts of the North Interstate 25 Express Lanes project. There will be no formal presentation, so show up any time between 5:30-7:30 p.m. Wednesday at the Ranch Events Complex, 5280 Arena Circle in Loveland.

Colorado Department of Transportation officials gave a tour of the project to media members on Friday, highlighting the project's improvements to safety, traffic flows and development in the area.

The centerpiece of the project are the express lanes, which will stretch on the inside lanes of I-25 from Colo. 402 near Johnstown to Colo. 14 near Fort Collins. As local governments and private businesses partnered on the project, other key parts of the project came to include: an expansion of U.S. 34 at I-25, connecting the Poudre River Trail under I-25 and a Bustang stop that will be the first of its kind in Colorado.

Officials said the longest closure associated with the project will be for a new interchange at Colo. 402, with a closure of 120 days. The wait will be well worth it, officials said. Right now, I-25 drivers pass over Colo. 402 on a curved bridge. As the weather cools, bridges are the first to ice over. Icy bridges are one of the top safety concerns for the I-25 corridor, CDOT regional director Johnny Olson said. The new interchange will have Colo. 402 bridge over I-25, as well as shifting I-25 east in order to flatten the tight curve.

In Weld County, officials have dubbed Colo. 402 — and the other roads it becomes as it passes through various communities — Freedom Parkway, with the goal of planning for the road's expansion as northern Colorado development continues its rapid growth.

A third lane in each direction will be added to U.S. 34 at I-25, stretching out a half-mile in each direction. Officials said the added lanes are expected to reduce congestion at the busy intersection. The added lanes will be built where there are now grassy medians. Officials expect the first construction work on the project will begin here.

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A new stop for the regional bus service, Bustang, will be built in the middle of the north- and southbound lanes of I-25 at Kendall Parkway, near Loveland. Located in the middle of I-25, the stop will allow buses to pull into the stop directly off the express lanes. The move is expected to save as much as 15 minutes each trip.

The toll rates for the express lanes will be set by CDOT's High Performance Transportation Enterprise, varying throughout the time of day. Officials said the rates will change in relation to the traffic volumes at different times of day to maintain the express lanes' travel time reliability. The fees will help CDOT pay off a loan for the $302 million project. Other funding sources included a $15 million grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation and $25 million from local governments.

Work on the project is expected to begin in late July at U.S. 34, just as work wraps up on the new bridges at Crossroads Boulevard. Officials said the rest of the project is loosely scheduled, as the finish attaining the rights of way needed for construction. The project is expected to be complete early 2022.

Throughout the roughly three-year project, two lanes of I-25 in each direction will remain open at all times throughout the day. Officials said there will be nighttime lane closures, when traffic volumes are lower.

Meet the project team

Colorado Department of Transportation officials will host an open house on Wednesday to educate drivers about the impacts of the North Interstate 25 Express Lanes project. There will be no formal presentation, so show up any time between 5:30-7:30 p.m. Wednesday at the Ranch Events Complex, 5280 Arena Circle in Loveland.